The Doctor's Permanent Companion
by scifi96
Summary: This is a story about the Doctor's love and the fight to save Earth. Worked on with PrincessEmma 13. Please review
1. Chapter 1

Prologue

In the war against the Sontarans, there are three diligent, but equally important groups, the Princess, First Lord of the Admiralty, and the Doctor; this is their story. The year is 3126, and Earth is at war. The Sontarans have resumed their military operations against Earth and plan to take the planet from the humans. To combat this, the International Alliance elected 18 year old Emma Reed, friend of the Doctor, as princess of Earth. Her best friend is her regent in her absence, and her long time friend, James, was given the position of Commander of Earth Space Forces.

Chapter One

James

The shuttle descended easily through the atmosphere. I sat in the VIP cabin, reading even more reports as Earth raced to construct a fighting force. To make matters worse, I was in command of all of it. When my long time friend, Emma, had been elected princess of Earth, she had asked me to take over command of Earth's Admiralty.

Since the Royal Space Navy was the only Earth military force at the time, that meant I was also Earth's military commander at the grand age of 18! I had been bestowed the Earldom of South Haven, and all of the responsibilities that entailed.

I wish the Doctor had been able to give us teleportation abilities, because this shuttling back and forth between the main command base for the RSN, on the moon, was becoming taxing. I had so much to do, even after I had finished organizing my staff.

I had 500 ships, with over four million crew members to organize. Even though Vice Admiral Ericsson, my admiral in charge of personnel, was handling most of it, I had to approve every promotion to captain or above, and their assignments. That alone included about 500-600 people.

"My lord, we're arriving at Ashford Castle," the pilot said over the intercom. I looked up from the report of the Fifth Fleet. I had been so engrossed in work that I had missed the entire trip to the surface. Two F-99 space fighters escorted the shuttle to the grounds of Earth's new capitol.

The shuttle landed gently on the ground and I picked up my briefcase. It had several E-pads in it, all classified military operations that needed approval. Emma had made it VERY clear that I was not allowed to conduct any major offensive without her permission. So, I had brought all seven plans my staff and I had concocted.

The Sontarans couldn't be allowed to be on the offensive. My plan was to use blitzkrieg runs on their main fleet bases that we had discovered over the last few months. With their navy in chaos, and no way to repair damaged ships, they'd have to stop attacking long enough for us to finish constructing our ships.

A Queen's Own guard walked up to the ramp and saluted. I returned the salute and shook her hand. She was a younger member of the guard, so she was usually sent out to the shuttle pad to receive guests. In the dozens of trips to Ashford, she and I had become relatively good friends. Rank and age made a real friendship impossible, but we were as close as we could be.

"Morning my lord," she said.

"Morning Danielle. How's her majesty this morning?" I asked. In public, I still used Emma's formal title. It seemed the right thing to do. In private, we dropped the titles, but if there was so much as one guard in the room, we resumed our use of formal titles.

"Pretty good sir. She's stressed understandably. There's a lot of pressure from the alliance to get the offensive ball rolling, but she's holding her own in there. She has a lot of good support, so her plan to give you a month should hold up," she replied. The response was longer than needed, but that was because she was secretly telling me how the emergency alliance meeting had gone last night.

"That's good news. I assume she's in her office," I said as we entered the castle.

"Yes my lord. Regent Meggie is with her," she said as we approached the office doors. The two guards standing watch stiffened and looked sharp as they saw me approach. I had to admit that I was warming up to the attention. My uniform was a little more conspicuous than I'd like, with all the medals and insignia, but otherwise that, I was enjoying being so highly ranked.

One of the guards knocked on the door three times. A voice yelled out for the guard to open the door. He turned the aging knob and opened the door and walked in. The door was closed behind, but thankfully, there were no guards or attendants in the room. Emma was in sweat pants and a t-shirt. I checked my ancient pocket-watch, a gift from the Doctor.

"Morning James. Have a seat," she said. The Doctor walked in and smiled when he saw me. Meggie was throwing darts at a picture of General Zhan, Commander Sontaran Fleet. "I assume you have the plans for me," she said. I sat down in my usual armchair.

"Yeah. I have seven for you to choose from. I hope you don't have any other appointments. They're gonna take a while."

"Oh, I thought that might be the case, so I cleared my morning. Well, Michael cleared my morning," she said. I smiled and shook my head. Michael had been chosen to be Emma's slave basically. He was always running errands for her.

"Good. Now plan 1 includes several fleets," I said, beginning the hours long presentation.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

James

"That concludes plan 7," I said, four hours, a breakfast, and six cups of coffee later. Emma had laid down across the Doctor's lap, and he was playing with her hair. Meggie had left a while ago, bored with the presentation, and she had no reason to have to stay.

"Finally!" Emma said, jolting up and smiling. "What is your choice?" she said.

"I'd have to say plan 4. It's the boldest by far, but I think we can pull it off, and it should give us about two months to breathe and finish those hulls out at the shipyards. That being said, it also has a slight chance of failure," I said honestly. Emma sighed.

"Is there not one that's bold, but doesn't have as much risk?" I nodded.

"Yeah, but I think it's best to do 4. It has the best reward-risk ratio," I said. She looked at the Doctor and nodded.

"Alright, do it," she said finally. "On a less serious note, you look like shit," she said. I nodded.

"That's not surprising. I haven't slept in a few days," I said, putting the E-pads back in the briefcase.

"James! You haven't slept in days?" Emma said, jumping up from the couch.

"Nope. I don't have time Emma. The Sontarans are a few months from constructing a fleet big enough to wipe us out. A few days of sleep is worth it. I have to get back to HQ," she grabbed my hand.

"I could order you to sleep you know," Emma said. I looked at her, hardening my gaze.

"If that is your wish, then do so. While, I'm asleep, you can think about the massive fleet heading to Earth," I said, tearing my arm from her grasp. "By your leave your majesty," I said. I knew I shouldn't have been mean to her. She was just trying to be a good friend, but I was tired, and I couldn't sleep.

What I hadn't told Emma was that the job wasn't the only think keeping me up. For the past month or so, I had been plagued my nightmares. I couldn't continue seeing the deaths I might cause, so I kept myself up by caffeine and willpower. It was working, to an extent.

I continued reading reports on the shuttle flight up. Even more reports had been filed during my four hours dirt-side, so I had even more to read upon my return to HQ. Thankfully, I had finished signing off on all of the six major fleets, making their commanders in charge of them, and in charge of their reports.

Still, that hadn't made as big of dent in paper work as I had hoped. Now that the medical department of the navy had been activated, I now had all of those reports to deal with. I used the stylus to sign my name on the E-pad and I sent that report back. One down, thirty nine more to go.

"My lord, we're docking at HQ." I turned off the E-pad and sighed. I had a meeting as soon as I got back aboard. Then I had an idea. I got out my com device and punched in the frequency number for my chief of staff, Commodore John Vance.

"John, I have a meeting when I get back. Can you work through these reports? I can't deal with them. Tell me if anything sticks out," I said.

"Of course sir. I was planning on working on them later anyway. I know how swamped you are. By your leave sir, Vance out," he said. The com clicked and I smiled. Finally, I was going to get some rest.

The shuttle moved slowly into the shuttle bay assigned to the highest officers in the command base that was nestled deep inside the moon. Powerful shields covered the moon, and were backed up by the moons density. Scientists had concluded that, even if the entire Sontaran fleet attacked, it would take three days to break through.

I walked quickly, but still looking sharp, off the shuttle. I moved quickly to my office and took the first five minutes break I had taken in the last month. It felt good, but it didn't last long. My steward knocked on the door and walked in.

"My lord, your staff is here." I sighed and straightened my uniform. My staff walked in and sat down at the conference table at the other end of the large office. I sat down at the head of the table and started the meeting.

My chief of staff was absent, but everyone else was there. Martha Jones, Medical Officer for the Royal Navy, sat next to me. Next to her, was my intelligence chief, Vice-Admiral Andrew Portman. Across the table from him was the woman in charge of naval operations, Admiral Margaret Packer. Next to her was Rose Tyler. She didn't have any special job, but she had helped lots and lots of times.

"Good afternoon all. I just got back from Ashford Castle. Her majesty has decided to go with plan 4. So, I want to go ahead and begin the logistics of all of this. I want the admirals from the First through Fourth fleets to meet with me once the operations have been planned," I said. "Now, let's discuss the new hulls being built over Mars."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

James

Later that same night, I was still in my office on the base. It was past midnight, and I had actually done the impossible. I had finished every report in my queue. Now, I was actually typing up new reports, trying to find something that I could do to put off sleep.

My door flew open and a girl, slightly older than me, walked in. I looked from the report and stared at her. She was in a short British police uniform, but I was pretty sure it was too short for any regulation. She closed the door and seductively sat in one of the chairs in front of me.

"You're James, right?" I rolled my eyes.

"Yes. I assume that Emma hired you or something," I said, returning back to the holographic screen floating in front of me.

"Hired me? Do you think I'm a prostitute?" she asked, laughing. I rolled my head back to her and sighed.

"To be honest, I do. Look, Mrs..." I said.

"Pond," she said.

"Mrs. Pond, I'm very busy and I don't know how you go to my office or why you did, but I really do not have time for this," I said. "So, if you don't mind showing yourself out."

Silence fell as I returned back to the report I was writing. I wrote another paragraph before noticing she was still here. She was rocking back and forth in the chair, showing her chest. I slammed down my fist and glared at her. I was going with four days without sleep and she was annoying me.

"What are you still doing here?" I asked, feeling frustrated. She laughed.

"I have orders not to leave until one of two things happen," she said, jumping up and walking around the room.

"Who gave you orders?" I asked, pretending to give a shit.

"Princess Emma herself." I groaned.

"What did Emma order you to do?" I asked, putting my feet up and the desk.

"I must sleep with you or sleep with you," she said. I blinked.

"So Emma said you have to make me sleep. That doesn't make any sense. She could have just sent a message," I said.

Mrs. Pond looked at me strangely. Then she smiled and started laughing. "No, I don't think that would work."

"Why not?" I asked. She turned and kept laughing.

"I don't think you understand. I'm not referring to sleeping." I'm not sure if my lack of sleep was the issue, or the fact that I was rarely hit on by a girl, but it didn't hit me until she finally told me.

"You said you had orders to sl-Son of a bitch!" I said as it hit me. Emma had sent someone to the headquarters for the entire Earth battle-fleet to have sex with me! "Look, Mrs. Pond, I appreciate the concern, but you can tell her majesty that I am fine," I said.

"First, it's Amy, second I volunteered. I met you at the coronation." I turned to look at the window. "You looked like a bit of a virgin, so I'd like to remedy that." I snapped back.

"What?" I said. "Okay, I barely know you, Amy," I said, barely changing Amy's name from Mrs. Pond.

"That's the point. It's called friends with benefits. No strings attached and all of that." I had no idea what she was talking about. I guess my expression showed that confusion because she said. "I'm assuming you've never heard of this." I shook my head. She groaned and got out her com unit. She then typed a number in. "Yeah, Emma, it's Amy. He's confused just like you said he'd be," she said.

"This is ridiculous," I said. She pushed the com unit at me and I picked it up.

"Look, Emma, this doesn't make sense at all. Can you please tell me what this Amy is doing here?" I said. Amy stomped her foot and gave me a puppy face. I was slowly warming up to the idea of spending a night with Amy.

"I thought that, if you couldn't sleep, then I'd have someone sleep with you!" Emma said excitedly. I was about to retort, but I decided against it.

"Fine," I said, ending the call. I handed the com unit back to Amy.

"Are you now going to let me sleep with you?" Amy said, jumping up and down.

"Against, my better judgement, yes," I said. She smiled and we left the room. My quarters were a few levels up from the office. I still don't know why I took Amy up on her offer, but I'm glad I did. After we "slept", I actually fell asleep next to her. I promise, I didn't mean to, but four days of staying up had finally caught up with me. Then the nightmares started.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

Princess Emma

"Love, are you really gonna wear sweats and a t-shirt when James comes?" the Doctor asked me.

"Well of course! It's just James, after all," I pointed out. The Doctor nodded to show his understanding.

There was a knock on the door and Meggie yelled, "Come in!" The door opened and revealed James, with all his plans. Meggie returned her attention to the dart board on the far side of the room.

"Morning James. Have a seat," I said. The Doctor walked in from the adjoining room and smiled when he saw James. Meggie was throwing darts at a picture of General Zhan, Commander of the Sontaran Fleet again. "I assume you have the plans for me," I stated. James sat down in his usual armchair.

"Yeah. I have seven for you to choose from. I hope you don't have any other appointments. They're gonna take a while."

"Oh, I thought that might be the case, so I cleared my morning. Well, Michael cleared my morning," I clarified. James smiled and shook his head. Michael was my peasant as I called him. He ran all my errands for me.

"Good. Now plan 1 includes several fleets." James said, beginning the hours long presentation.

After finally picking a plan, James left. I was still sprawled across the Doctor's lap, his fingers ghosting through my scalp. I had known him for years. There had always been this sexual tension between us that finally we gave up trying to hide. He went from staying three feet away to keep from touching me to touching me all the time just because he could. I wouldn't say we were a "boyfriend/girlfriend" kinda thing. We definitely had never been on any real dates. It was just understood by all that we were "together."

"Doctor," I said out of the blue.

"Hmm?" he hummed as I pulled him out of a revelry. I sat up and he pulled me onto his lap, winding his arms around my waist.

"James is going to get sleep." I adjusted myself so I could look the Doctor in the eye.

"And how do you propose to do that, love?" the Doctor implored. I cocked an eyebrow deviously.

"I've got an idea, but I'll need to change first." I stood up and walked over to the door.

"Do I even wanna ask?" I shook my head as I smirked. "I'll just wait here then." The Doctor propped his feet up on my desk and leaned back on the couch sitting behind my desk.

I quickly went to put on something that looked sort of professional. Also known as jeans, an oxford shirt, and a pull over sweater. I nixed shoes; I hated shoes in general anyway. Plus, I was too distracted with how my idea would play out. As I dug through my closet, I saw part of my plan and grabbed it.

I walked over to my E-pad sitting atop a pile of sweat pants. I scrolled through my contacts before finding Meggie and pulling up a holographic call.

"Hey, Princess!" she answered.

"Is there a guard in there with you, Regent Meggie?" I asked, adopting her title just in case.

"Nah, it's just Amy." Amy appeared in the background. Amy was Meggie's new assistant. None of us really understood why she had an assistant considering she didn't do much. I mean, if she had to do her regent duties, she'd get my staff and guard. But it was her choice.

"Look, can you two meet me in my office in five? I have a plan." Meggie raised an eyebrow.

"Your plans are always mischievous... I'm in!"

"See ya then!" I shut down the hologram and grabbed the E-pad and the other part of my plan before heading back to my office. Meggie and Amy followed right behind me.

As I entered the office, a look of confusion crossed the Doctor's face.

"Why do you have a police uniform?" he asked. I blushed a bit.

"It's for my plan," I replied. I went and sat on the front of my desk, looking at Meggie. "Meggie, do you need Amy for anything?"

"Um, no...?" she answered cautiously.

"Good! Now Amy, you get to do something very important for me!" Amy looked terrified. "Calm down. James needs sleep or else he won't perform his best." I threw the police costume at her. "Put this on. I want you to stay up there whenever he needs sleep... If you catch my drift." I winked at her, watching her blush.

"Why me though?" Amy asked. I chuckled.

"Because you get paid if you do something, and working for Meggie, you do nothing. So now you'll get paid!"

"Isn't there another way to make him sleep? I mean... He's not unattractive I guess, but I hardly know him!"

"Look, if we can get him in the bed, he won't be able to resist sleep." She had to agree it was sound logic. "Plus, it's a scientific fact that men fall asleep after sex. Therefore, it's the best way to make him sleep. If you need proof, ask the Doctor." I looked over my shoulder at him to wink while he bit his lip. God, it was sexy.

"Ugh, Emma. Shut up," Meggie begged. "Just because I'm your best friend doesn't mean I wanna hear about your sex life." Amy blushed more.

"Please, Amy? For me? I mean, I can order you to, but that sounds harsh." I pulled out a puppy dog face.

"Emma, dear, that's not fair," the Doctor interjected. "Your puppy dog face is irresistible."

"Maybe to you," Meggie muttered.

"Sure..." Amy consented. "You _are_ the Princess." I grinned like the Cheshire Cat.

"Thank you!" I grabbed her and Meggie puling them towards the door. "Meggie, take her to platform 12. The shuttle is already docked. I'll send you the room number of James' office. Bye! Have fun!" I pushed the two girls out of my office. As I locked the door, I heard the Doctor laughing. I turned around to him and sauntered over. "What's so funny?"

"You really think this will work?" he questioned.

"Of course! What straight man doesn't want the affection of a beautiful girl?" I asked. The Doctor smiled at me.

"I mean, I certainly do." He cocked an eyebrow at me. He grabbed my hips in his large hands and pulled me into a straddling position on his lap.

"Stop being sexy," I joked, poking his nose gently.

"I can't help it," the Doctor replied smiling. I giggled. Sometimes I sounded like a normal teenage girl, not Princess of Earth.

"Just trust me, it'll work."

"I trust you." He cupped my face in his hand and brought me closer until our lips touched. He moved his lips against mine, and I marveled at the feel of them. Not soft, but not too rough. Perfect, really. It wasn't the first time we'd kissed, mind you, but it always felt like that wonderful feeling. My stomach tingled with butterflies. At that moment, I didn't care about the impending fleet or the Earth. It was just me and the Doctor. My Doctor.

He left one hand on my face and moved the other to my bum, supporting me. I wrapped my arms around his neck and tangled my fingers in his hair. Our lips moved in sync, and I started to grind my hips onto his ever so slightly. A moan escaped his lips, and it sent vibrations through my whole body. The kiss started to get more heated until...

"Oh... Sorry, Princess..." Michael said from the doorway. I was pissed, to say the least. I was usually pretty nice to him, but when he angered me... Well, it wasn't pretty.

"What, peasant?" I asked. I only used that term when I was angry. I untangled myself from the Doctor and stood up.

"You Majesty, Commodore Vance just told us that the fleet is preparing for deployment," Michael announced, his voice sounding a little stronger.

"Oh, good! We'll have to check with them after James wakes up." I waved my hand to dismiss Michael. He bowed and left. I turned back to the Doctor, who cracked up laughing.

"Did you see the look on his face when he caught us?!" he howled.

"No, I was facing you!"

"Oh, right. Well, it was priceless."

"I'll bet," I admitted. Michael _did_ tend to be sort of awkward. He was tall, lean, blonde, and just generally awkward. "Now, handsome, what are your plans for me for the rest of the day?" I leaned seductively against my desk.

"Oh, you've got a busy day," the Doctor smirked.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

James

I woke up sore. Light streamed through the E-window. which had somehow been changed to a day time setting. Amy was sitting on the bed, still naked. I groggily turned to the clock on my bedside table and jumped out of the bed as I saw how late it was.

It was after 1100 hours, which meant that I had missed at least a meeting, if not two. I grabbed a uniform out of the closet and walked to the bath room. It was then that I heard laughter. I turned from the doorway and looked at Amy, who had thankfully put on my uniform to cover herself.

"What?" I asked. She smiled and walked over.

"I just thought your reaction was funny. It's Sunday you know. Plus, Emma called your chief of staff and canceled all of your meetings." I spun around, eyes wide.

"She did what?" I asked. She canceled my meetings? Who was she to cancel my meetings?

"She canceled your meetings. You need some rest after last night." I rolled my eyes.

"Look, just because I don't have sex often, doesn't mean it's a problem for me, but thanks for your concern," I said sarcastically.

"You don't remember do you?" she asked.

"Remember what?" I asked. "Yeah, I remember most of last night."

"Most of what I did probably. Do you remember what happened after you fell asleep?"

"Uh, no, I was asleep," I said, rolling my eyes. I walked back into the bedroom and hung up the clothes.

"Look, after you fell asleep, you woke up several times during the night, screaming." I stopped walking and looked out the window. Before she had said that, I hadn't remembered. Once she had said it, it came back to me. The horrible fires of death that I would cause haunted me constantly. The dreams would become so bad, I would wake up screaming. Tonight was the first night that I had someone to hold me.

"Yeah, that. I'm sorry," I said. I was taken aback when she took my hand.

"It's no problem. In all honesty, Emma didn't really have to order me to sleep with you. She said that you needed help, and I've admired you from afar for awhile. The only thing I don't understand is why she didn't tell me." Her sentence struck me like a slap in the face. I hated lying to Emma about the nightmares, but she was so happy with the Doctor and didn't need to hear about my nightmares.

"She doesn't know," I said simply. Amy squeezed my hand again.

"I understand. I'm sorry. Is that why you didn't sleep for several days?" she asked. I wanted to not answer her, but at the same time I felt like I could trust her.

"Yeah. It got too much for me, so I took a hiatus from sleeping," I said.

"You know, I understand. Why don't we just go back to sleep?" Amy asked, pulling me to the bed.

Later Sunday afternoon, I was able to reschedule two of the meetings that Amy had canceled. Commodore Vance had been understanding, which probably had more to do with the fact that he knew about Emma's plan than it was his loyalty to me. He sat in his usual seat as I walked into the conference room.

None of the officers stared at me, but I could tell they knew. Rose gave me a wink. I suddenly felt weird that she and I had hooked up before. Amy had been so nice, and I actually liked her. I know it was weird for me to feel that way, but I did.

"Alright, let's get started," I said. "Her majesty wants the operation to be carried out as soon as possible. I'm also going to be commanding the mission myself." Arguments started across the table between officers. They had been great leaders a few minutes ago, and fighting kids the next. "Silence!"

"My lord, you cannot lead this yourself!" Vance said. "It's too risky, and you're needed here." His logic made sense, but I disagreed nonetheless.

"I know it's risky, but I'm the most senior officer in the fleet and I need to do this," I said, praying that I wasn't betraying my inner horror at leading the fleet.

"Aye sir," Vance said. I could tell that he didn't want to stop arguing, so I would be hearing from him later.

"Inform the _Enterprise_ that I will be coming aboard. If that's it, I have more reports to do," I said. "Dismissed." I walked from the conference room and to my office. Vance followed me in.

"Sir, I must, again, present my protests," he said.

"Thank you commodore. Please attend to your other duties," I said. He nodded and left. I sat in my chair and sighed.

"He has a point you know." I spun around in my chair to face Amy. She was dressed a little less provocatively, and sitting on the sofa. "Your chief of staff is right. I can't bear to see you put yourself in unnecessary danger, just to try and prove to yourself that you can."

"Amy, I have to do this. I can't send three quarters of a million people to a possible death, and then sit behind this desk, writing some report." I said. Amy patted the sofa seat next to her. I walked over and sat down. She put her head on my shoulder.

"I know. I know something else too," she said.

"What?" I asked. She whispered three words in my ear that changed everything.

"I love you."


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six

James

I was back at Ashford for the final meeting with Emma about the deployment. The fleet was days from launching the operation, and I was actually scared. Emma was sitting in her office when I was shown in to her wing of the house. Again, she was in a t-shirt and sweatpants, and the Doctor was leaning against the desk, kissing her when I walked in. They suddenly stopped when I walked in.

"Sorry, we couldn't really hold ourselves," Emma said smiling. I rolled my eyes and shook my head. "So, uh, I hear that you and Amy are doing well," Emma said. She was obviously happy with herself.

"Yes we are. However, that's not why I came down here," I said. "I have some last minute reports to give you." I pulled out my E-pad and put it on her desk.

"How many reports?" she asked.

"Thirty or so." Emma sighed and put her head in her hands.

"Thirty? James come on! Thirty?" I nodded and she sighed again.

"Hey, you're the one who said I had to keep you updated constantly," I said. "That's what I'm doing."

"I need to reconsider the constantly thing. Sit down," Emma said. I sat down in one of the armchairs. "How are you? I need to know how my commander's doing. You seem better than the last time we spoke."

"I am actually. I finally got some sleep, and Amy and I have had dinner together every night this week," I said. Emma smiled but then turned to the Doctor.

"How are the nightmares?" The Doctor finally asked. I jumped up and looked at him. Emma didn't seem surprised, so they obviously had discussed it.

"How do you know?" I asked. "Did Amy tell you?"

"No. I just can tell that you're having problems and that your lack of sleep was not because of how much work. I talked to Commodore Vance and he told me that you were actually making up new reports for you to do. That had to mean there was something bothering you," The Doctor said.

"James, what are the nightmares about?" Emma asked, as she sat on the sofa next to the chair.

"I don't want to talk about it," I said.

"Yes, you do. That's why you told Amy and that's why you're going to tell me," Emma said.

"Fine. I see the fleet being destroyed, because of my decisions," I said.

"To remedy that, you boycotted sleeping!" Emma said. I looked away as she yelled.

"Yeah," I said.

"Goddamn it! What were you thinking?" she asked. "It's good I sent Amy then."

"Yeah, I guess so," I said. I checked my pocket-watch. "Look, I have to get going. I have a lot to do before I deploy in two days." Emma nodded and I left.

I laid in bed next to Amy the night before I would deploy. I couldn't sleep at all, but I pretended to so Amy could fall asleep. She was so beautiful, especially when she was asleep. For the last several days, we had spent as much time together as we could.

The nightmares had finally gone away as Amy and I had become closer over the last week. I wasn't sure if what we had was a relationship per say, but it was the closest I had ever come to having one.

My restlessness accidentally woke Amy up and she put her arms around me. She didn't really like wearing anything to bed, and she wasn't wearing anything now. She smiled and kissed me.

"Can't sleep?" she asked. I shook my head, still kissing her. "Well, in that case, we might as well do something fun." I really wanted to do whatever fun thing she had planned, but I couldn't, not before the biggest day of my life.

"No, Amy I can't get distracted before deploying," I said. She flipped me over and got on top of me.

"Too bad."

I stood at the airlock, waiting for the _Enterprise _to finish docking. Amy had come with me to the airlock to say goodbye. TV stations across the system were showing the fleet as it formed the battle formation. My flagship had left the formation to dock with the base. The _Enterprise_ wasn't the most powerful ship in the fleet, but it had the most command functions.

The green light above the airlock door blinked twice before solidifying. The door opened and I was about to walk through, but Amy grabbed my arm and spun me around.

"You better come back, you son of a bitch," she said, before grabbing my head and kissing me. "If you don't, you'll regret it."

"Yes ma'am. I'll be back in a little over a month," I said. She hugged me and stood there, comforting each other. I finally let go and walked through the door. I knew I was being cold, but if I let my feelings take over, I would never leave.

I walked onto the flag deck and sat in my command chair. The consoles around it began to light up and information streamed in. I could feel the ship undocking from the base and moving back into position. Emma was giving a grand speech at the opening of the World Assembly. She ended her speech and applause replaced it.

"My lord, all fleets report ready for hyperjump. Waiting for your orders," Vance said from his seat.

"Good." I hit the fleet wide intercom button. "All fleets, prepare to jump." I thought one last time about Amy. "Jump." The three hundred ships left the safety of Earth and entered the mouth of hell.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

Princess Emma

"Babe, you need to wake up," the Doctor implored in my ear. I yawned and opened my eyes. He had propped himself up on an elbow and was playing with my hair.

"Are we going for round two?" I asked groggily. "Cause if we are, I need to brush my teeth..."

"Ha ha, no dear. The World Assembly meeting is this morning." The Doctor watched as my face went from groggy to completely alert.

"Shit! I forgot about that!" I exclaimed, rushing out of the bed. "Why do you always occupy me the night before something important?"

"Hmm... I never realized that that is what seems to happen," the Doctor mused. I stopped to glare at him, and he chuckled. I ran to the bathroom and pressed the intercom button.

"Morning, your majesty," Michael answered.

"What am I supposed to be wearing?" I looked at myself in the mirror while assessing what I needed to do to look presentable.

"I believe Regent Meggie set out a dress for you?" Michael asked. Obviously nobody knew what was going on.

"Um, okay... Not seeing that... But I'm supposed to wear a dress?"

"I think so. At least, that's what Regent Meggie said."

"Well, Regent Meggie is being of no help." I heard footsteps from behind me.

"Michael, I know what she needs to wear," the Doctor said, wrapping his arms around my waist. "Love, let's stop harassing Michael. He does run your errands after all," he whispered in my ear.

"I'm sorry I snapped, Michael," I conceded.

"You're forgiven. Don't worry, Princess. You're very stressed. Don't feel ashamed," Michael reassured me. I couldn't help but smile.

"Thanks, Michael. Ya know, if you weren't working for me, I feel like we'd be great friends!" I beamed up at the Doctor, who had a strange look on his face. "Michael, you're dismissed." I switched off the intercom.

"I think being friends is a little too far," he stated. I looked deep in his eyes. He had such old eyes. He looks 26 years old, but his eyes say so much more. Betray so much wisdom. They're beautiful. However, I saw something in them that I'd never seen before. Almost like...

"You're jealous!" I exclaimed. I turned around in his arms, flashing him a broad grin. I watched as he blushed. It was so cute. It gave me butterflies. I leaned up to peck his lips. "You have nothing to worry about."

"I know..." he admitted. He looked past my head. "But we can discuss this later. You need to get going!" He turned me around and left the bathroom, shutting the door behind him. I got ready quickly and opened the door to see him sitting on my bed, fully dressed and holding my dress. I walked over, motioning for him to give me the dress.

"Come on, Doctor. We don't have time for games!" I implored. He smiled cheekily and shook his head.

"Hmm... No... I think you need to come and get it." I loved him to pieces; I really did. And any other time, this would've been super cute, and very sexy but this was not the right day to do it.

"Doctor," I said sternly. His smile faltered as I used my authoritative voice on him. "Hand me the dress. Please." The Doctor stood up and brought me my dress. I pulled off the giant t-shirt I had on and pulled the dress on, allowing the Doctor to zip it up for me. I grabbed some nude heels off the floor and pulled a blazer out of the closet. I looked at myself in the full-length mirror. Yeah, I looked like a Princess should. At least, from what I found. I based most of my style off of some Princess that lived in England in the 2000s... Kate, or something? Anyway, everything she wore was classy, and I liked it.

"You look marvelous," the Doctor told me. He swept my hair out from under the collar of my blazer. I turned around to face him.

"You're coming with me, right? I mean, you're not staying?"

"Wouldn't dream of it. I will be there right by your side," he assured me. He took my hand, intertwining our fingers, and he led me to the platform where the shuttle was waiting to take us the London, the headquarters of the World Assembly.

The ride took maybe thirty minutes. The Doctor and I walked in, and I saw my name on a plaque at the head of the meeting table. The plaque read, _Emma Reed, Princess of Earth_. Next to mine, on my right, a plaque read, _The Doctor, Alien Intelligence Expert._ I chuckled despite myself. He certainly knew many things, but I don't think even _he_ would consider himself an expert, per say. I took my seat, and the Doctor took his. As all of the world leaders entered, I could feel my heart beat pick up. The Doctor noticed me fidgeting nervously.

_Who am I kidding? I'm an 18 year-old girl! And I'm supposed to lead the Earth against the Sontarans?_ I thought, doubting myself. I felt a warmth on my knee and looked under the table. The Doctor had scooted his chair closer to mine and placed a hand on my knee. I felt myself relaxing.. Everyone had taken his/her seats and they were patiently awaiting my start.

"You'll be fine. Remember, I'm right here," The Doctor whispered. I stood up, trying to recall what I had prepared for today. I took a deep breath.

"Good morning, everyone. Thank you for coming. Yesterday, the Royal Space Navy deployed into hyperspace jump for battle. We are calling the operation TARDIS ARRAY. Unfortunately, as soon as they entered the hyperspace jump, all of our communications with them were cut off. We will not know what is going on until they return." A grumble arose from the collected politicians. The French president, Jacques Dubois, jumped up from his seat, clearly in a rage. He had always disliked me...

"And you expect us to just wait here like sitting ducks because we have no clue what's happening?!" he demanded. I watched his face slowly turn red, starting with the tips of his ears.

"Yes. I do. We have no other choice. We knew going into this war that once outside the solar system we would lose contact. This was a risk that the board was willing to make, President Dubois." I remained calm as I stood. "Now, if you'll please take your seat."

"No, I will not! Princess, we here are questioning your leadership and choice of admiral. You could pick anyone. Even Torchwood's Jack Harkness volunteered! And you picked James Allendale?!" The other diplomats looked at each other, clearly agreeing with his statement.

"Admiral Allendale is completely qualified to undertake this mission, President Dubois." My answer didn't seem to placate him.

"Also, who ever said that you, an 18 year-old girl, was qualified to lead the world!? For all we know, you could actually be helping them take over the Earth!"

"President Dubois, I think you should sit down," the Doctor interjected. I'm glad he did. I was close to tears, and I didn't need to show this. I had to remain strong. Jacques Dubois slowly sank back into his seat.

"President Dubois," I said slowly, closing my eyes and taking a deep breath to steady my voice. "I will have you know that if I didn't have a personal vendetta against the Sontarans, I would not have volunteered."

"Oh, and what is that? They blew up your favorite mall?!" Dubois retorted. I opened my eyes quickly and glared at him. My voice became steely cold and my eyebrows furrowed in pain.

"No, Mr. President. They took my parents and myself hostage because we are friends of the Doctor, and I was forced to watch as they tortured and murdered my parents. I would have been killed, too, if the Doctor had not saved me." All of the anger drained from Jacques Dubois' face, and he settled into his chair, a look of utter remorse on his face.

"I am so sorry. I didn't... I didn't know."

"Most people don't," I replied coldly. I sat back in my seat. "Does anybody else oppose my rule and/or my decisions. I hate to say this, but anybody who states that they oppose me will be tried for treason." Everyone shook his/her heads and I smiled cynically. "Well then. Meeting dismissed." The committee stood solemnly. The usual gossipy chatter was gone. Each member shot me a sad glance as they left.

"Let's leave," the Doctor whispered in my ear, taking my hand. I nodded. I didn't want their pity. I couldn't stand it. I didn't need it. I was strong without it. We boarded the shuttle to go back to Ashford Castle.

"I need whiskey..." I muttered as the shuttle started to move. The Doctor had settled his arm over my shoulder and gave me a funny look. "What?"

"That doesn't sound very classy," he snickered. I looked at him, mouth agape. Then I smiled, and slapped his chest playfully.

"I'll have you know that whiskey is a very classy form of alcohol." He gave me a _yeah right_ look. "Plus, I think I may be drinking a lot of it until James returns..."


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight

Princess Emma

I spent the next month in pieces. I was trying to be everywhere at once. I had asked Michael to get me a set of whiskey glasses and the finest whiskey Ireland had to offer to keep in my office. Sometimes, I was able to calm down by getting myself drunk. Other times? Not so much.

I hated not knowing what was going on with the fleet. I didn't know where James was or anything. Sometimes I paced my office, a glass of whiskey in one hand, and my other hand pulling at my hair. I had become a wreck. I never wore anything more elaborate than sweats and a t-shirt, and my hair was never done anymore. This whole 'uncertainty' thing was annoying as fuck.

The only thing that really calmed me down was the fact that the Doctor plays piano. Sometimes, he would go to the sitting room and play the baby grand in there. I loved to go and listen to him play. It looked so effortless, and I frequently caught myself staring, thinking of the _other_ wonders that his fingers could work.

One day was particularly rough. I suddenly felt the immense guilt welling up inside of me. What if James died? What if he died, and it was all my fault? I could've picked someone else, could've been selfish and kept him safe. He was such a close friend; he was basically the only family I had left. I didn't wanna lose him. But I had no idea what was happening or where he was. I sat on the couch in my office and pulled my knees up to my chest. I pulled my hair tie out, letting my hair cascade around my face. I buried my face in my knees and sobbed. I heard the door open and close, and a pair of footsteps approached me. I felt the Doctor wrap his arms around me, and I fell apart, climbing onto his lap.

After an hour I had calmed down. I looked up at the Doctor.

"Thank you," I said.

"For what?"

"For putting up with me," I admitted sheepishly.

"Believe me. I love it." He picked me up off of his lap and sat me back on the couch. He stood in front of me before speaking again. "Emma, we've known each other for years. I was friends with your parents, and when I heard about their deaths, I only hoped I could be a better friend to you than I was to them. But I found something better. I found you. You, the love of my life. Sure, I thought I loved some of the others, but nothing felt as natural as this does. Emma, you definitely are something special. And I wanna spend the rest of my life, however long that is, watching you become the marvelous person you're meant to be." He got down on one knee, and I covered my mouth so I wouldn't scream. He pulled out a box, and popped the lid, displaying a beautiful but simple ring. "Emma Reed, will you marry me?" I felt the tears streaming down my face, and I nodded. I couldn't speak.

"Yes," I croaked out. He came over and picked me up, setting me on his lap again as he sat down. He slid the ring on my left hand, and I held it up to admire it. I kissed him, and settled into his chest while he cradled me so that I could calm down.

So we just sat there before the Doctor pushed my hair aside and started to place butterfly kisses all over my neck. I let out an involuntary moan. I felt him smirk against my skin.

"Doctor..." I muttered. I felt his breath against my ear.

"What, baby?" he purred. I could feel a knot starting in my stomach. I was about to speak when he scooped me up bridal style and started to carry me out of my office. I wrapped my arms around his neck. I could feel his fingers rubbing tiny circles on the inside of my thighs as he carried me down the hallway.

"Where are we going?" I asked sweetly, playing the innocence card. I looked around; how did no one manage to be out here? I show him a smile, and he looked down at me, his hazel eyes smoldering. I watched as he smirked, his eyes becoming dark with lust. He elevated the arm that the upper part of my body was on and lowered his face to my ear again.

"I am taking you to your bedroom so that I can fuck you until you can't walk." I shivered in anticipation. I suddenly smirked deviously; if he was gonna play dirty, so was I. I leaned up to his ear.

"Ass, now," I whispered. He moved his hands as I situated myself. I now had my legs wrapped around his waist while he supported my bum. He squeezed lightly and I had to do something. "You... You can't just tease me like that. You're gonna get it..." I warned. I began kissing his neck. I found his sweet spot and sucked it. I heard him moan, and I started to bite. I smoothed the new love bite with my tongue. He kicked open the door to our room. (He had his own room, but didn't use it." He shut it behind us with his foot, and walked over to the edge of the bed. He practically threw me, and I giggled. "Oh, someone't being naughty..." I expected him to ravage me right away.

"Yes you are," he said seductively. I stared as he backed away from the bed. He threw off his bow-tie. He unbuttoned his shirt underneath his suspenders. He knew the suspenders turned me on, so he left them and took the shirt off. He kicked his shoes off and quickly removed his socks before crawling on top of me. I snapped one of the suspenders gently.

"I see we're going for kinky?" I joked. My hands went to his pants but he grabbed my hands.

"Someone's eager?" I shrugged. "It's all about you tonight. You've been stressed, and I wanna relieve that stress..." the Doctor murmured. He placed his hands on either side of my head and leaned down to kiss me. i wrapped my arms around his neck and grabbed a fistful of his hair in one of my hands. I tugged his hair, and he groaned. I slipped my tongue in his mouth. Our tongues began to battle for dominance, his winning easily. I ran a hand down his toned chest. I was always awed by how gorgeous he was. My hand slipped around to his back, sliding down to his ass and pushing his pelvis against mine. He gasped at the contact before grinding his hips on mine. He brought a hand to the bottom of my shirt and started to play with the hem. I sat us up, straddling his lap while he pulled the shirt over my head. He brought a hand to my back and expertly unhooked my bra, throwing it to the floor. He pushed me back down onto the bed and ran his hands down to my sweats. I bucked my hips and he chuckled against my lips. He slid his hands into my pants and pulled them off. I arched my back to help him, and he began to kiss down to my chest. He got to my breasts and took one in my mouth, sucking gently. I moaned in pleasure and pushed his head further on my chest. Again, I moved my hands down to his pants, but this time he didn't stop me. I unbuttoned them with ease and unzipped them. He moved his mouth back up to mine, kissing me feverishly. I slid my hands up his torso, admiring him. I hooked my thumbs under his suspenders and slid them off of his shoulders. He took that as his cue to undress, because he stood up and shimmied out of his pants before climbing back on top of me.

"Come on baby," I moaned. "Please don't tease me any longer!" The Doctor chuckled darkly.

"Mmmm, love. I'm not finished with you yet, though," he growled. I could feel my panties getting wetter, if that was possible. The Doctor pressed himself down on me as he kissed me. I felt his growing bulge through his boxers and couldn't take it anymore.

"Goddammit! Get in me!" I screamed. He laughed again and trailed a finger down to my underwear. He took his finger and slid it along the underside before ripping them off. He quickly pulled his own off before hovering over me again. He looked at me with amusement in his eyes. He leaned down and nibbled under my ear.

"Who made you this wet, darling?" he whispered. I could hardly catch a breath, let alone answer. This was what I wanted. I knew that. Right then. The idea of an heir had been on my mind a lot lately, because obviously I had to have one. I wanted his/her father to be the Doctor. Therefore, I was gonna do anything to get him to fuck me. Good.

"You did..." I managed. I felt him tease my entrance.

"Louder. I couldn't hear you." I knew what he was playing at.

"Oh my god! You did, Doctor! You made me this wet! Now please! FUCK ME!"

"Perfect." He slammed into me. Good lord, had I been waiting for this. I arched my back as he thrusted himself into me, hitting that one magic spot every time. "Yell my name. Tell everyone who is making you feel this good." He leaned in again as he thrusted and dropped his voice. "Tell everyone who the father of your children will be." He had me. He had me right where he wanted me. He knew that I wanted a family, and now he could maneuver me however he pleased.

"Oh god! Doctor!" I yelled. In hindsight, that was probably a little unprofessional, but nobody really questioned me because it was _my_ castle after all. (Well, sorta.) I could feel myself getting close. I shut my eyes and tangled my hands in his hair. He was getting close, too. His thrusts were becoming sloppy.

"Emma, I'm close!" he said. I felt him start to pull out, but I grabbed his hips and pulled them closer, my eyes flying open. He gave me a look. "You're sure about this?" I nodded.

"Cum in me, babe," I purred. That was all he needed. His dick twitched, and that set me off. We came together, and he kept thrusting while we rode out our highs. The Doctor pulled out and fell net to me. He rolled over and pulled me in to cuddle.

"Are you sure about that?" he asked.

"Absolutely. I need an heir." I glanced at him, waiting for the disapproval that was bound to come. I knew how he was. He didn't want to feel obligated to stay. Of course, I also knew that somehow this was different. I mean, we were getting married.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine

James

For the past three weeks, I did nothing. It was strange, and I actually disliked sitting around. I gave the _Enterprise_'s captain, Captain Joseph Fuller, permission to run more drills than the rulebook allowed. It would keep the crew on their feet, and I felt better knowing that they weren't getting rusty.

I held daily meetings during the trip. Captain Fuller, as my flag captain, attended them all. He and I had a good working relationship, and we understood the other's tactics. He was more for slashing in and taking out them enemy while we could, where I was more for holding back. However, he had a good point, so I designed my plan to take both theories into account.

Ships were divided by their size and put into several categories. Destroyers were the smallest units and usually travelled in packs of nine-twelve. Light cruisers were slightly better armored and traveled in squadrons of eight or so. Heavy cruisers were a big step up and had a lot more weapons than their light counterparts. Heavy cruisers ran with battlecruiser and battleship squadrons as their main screening element. They helped protect the heavier ships from missiles. Battlecruisers were a slightly less armored, much faster version of the heavily armored battleship. Dreadnaughts were massive leviathans. They had power beyond belief. The _Enterprise_ was a dreadnaught.

My plan called for the destroyers and light cruisers to break off and run blitzkrieg against the Sontarrans before they could get their defenses up and running. Then they would bait the enemy fleet into coming at us. We would be waiting with Earth's newest weapon.

It was a missile pod. The pod was a box basically. It had six missiles and a launch system. They were tied into the ships's tactical grid and controlled from the bridge. By our calculations, the fleet had enough firepower to launch 100,000 missiles per salvo, and since the pods were stealth coated, they wouldn't be detected.

We named it Operation TARDIS ARRAY. It didn't really have anything to do with the TARDIS; it just sound cool as shit. The data packages were made and would be sent out once we cleared the hyperspace tunnel, which was happening today. I sat on the flag bridge, looking at the fleet map's predictions of our exit patterns.

I had twenty minutes until we left the tunnel. Fuller and I had agreed not to sound General Quarters until fifteen minutes out. I hoped the other captains were also taking the same care so their crews could get some sleep. Although, I doubt anyone was asleep at this moment.

I had forced myself to sleep, even taking meds, which I was usually very against. In this case, I made an exception. Amy wasn't here to help me sleep and the three million men and women under my command needed me at my best. Alarms suddenly sprang to life as Fuller called General Quarters. I saw the weapon status of the _Enterprise_ as its weapons activated. I couldn't get any other reports for another fifteen minutes.

Outside, I knew I looked like a cool commander who wasn't worried, but on the inside, I was reliving every nightmare I had every had about this battle. How many people would die under my command? How many would die because I ordered the firing of missiles? How many deaths would I cause on both sides?

The questions haunted me, but it was too late to consider them now. I pushed them out of my mind and focused on the map table in the middle of the large flag bridge. The fleet was going to a system unnamed, but referred to as Alpha Base for planning purposes. Spy ships had found premier shipyards, and a good two hundred ships guarding them. If we could destroy the shipyards and destroy the guard fleet, it would be a major blow to the enemy and they would need months to recover.

The system had no real planets, it had a few asteroids and a mining colony, but its only real value was the shipyards. There were thirty main structures in the system and they all had hulls in them. Hopefully, many wouldn't be in fighting condition, but we had to assume that they were.

"All hands, this is the captain. We're exiting hyperspace in one minute. I repeat one minute." The tension in the room multiplied as the announcement came over the ship's intercom. I took a deep breath and turned to Vance.

"Get ready to send the data package to the other ships. Inform Rose Tyler that her destroyer screen is to take point. Distribution is up to her." I said. Vance nodded and spoke into his earpiece.

I sat back down in my seat and breathed a few times. I took a few sips of coffee, not that I needed any. I was pumped enough as it was, but again, I needed to seem unfazed by the upcoming battle. Suddenly, the ship lurched and the map table changed to show the fleet. Weapons had all been activated during the journey and all ships reported ready for battle. We were a good two hours away from the enemy, if the fleet moved as fast as the slowest dreadnaught.

The data package was sent and within minutes the destroyers and light cruisers broke off and engaged their engines to maximum. Soon they were way beyond the safety of the fleet. Sensors kept bringing in information. They hadn't reach the structures yet, but they would in a few minutes.

I felt guilty sending ninety seven ships into a situation where they had no idea where the enemy was or how many there were of them. However, this plan was the best of a lot of bad plans. The problem with space battles is that there's no way to know about the enemy until you're there, facing them in the eyes.

I began changing the fleet formation to allow maximum distance for when the pods were launched. They would be towed by the ships, so the ships needed to be spread out so the shields didn't interfere. Also, it was better to have the fleet in a wide formation so that a single explosion stays a single explosion.

When I finished, alarms blared as the enemy had finally been found. I took a sip of coffee and then looked at the map. It took every ounce of self-control not to spit it out in surprise. The assumed two hundred ship fleet had just increased to seven hundred and sixty ships! How many ships did these people have?

Silence fell the room as the crew members took in the news that their supposed advantage had been taken away and they were now at a huge disadvantage. However, the plan Fuller and I had implemented would still work in this situation. The ninety seven ships were taking a bigger risk, but the pods would do their jobs.

"Sir, a General, First Class, Zhan would like to speak with you on com. He's the brother of Grand General Zhan." Vance said.

"Patch him through." I said and then looked at my small display.

"General." I said coldly. "Surrender now and no one gets hurt." It was a little more cliche than I was hoping for.

"Ha! We outnumber you. I am no fool! We will crush your puny fleet an then destroy your little planet."

"I somehow doubt that. See you in hell." I said ending the brief conversation.

The ninety seven ships dropped their speed and deployed the pods. They fire their tow beams and then increased to maximum to speed. Engagement wouldn't occur for another ten minutes and we were watching events ten minutes after they occurred so the fleet had already engaged the enemy, but we wouldn't know anything for ten whole horrible minutes.

I ordered the fighters to be deployed from the battleships and dreadnaughts. Over seven thousand fighters flew out and I organized them into a second screening element. They didn't carry the all powerful super sonic nuclear missiles that capital ships did, but they did carry nuclear weaponry so they could do some damage and their light laser beam could stop any missile fired.

Then the first shots were fired. I didn't realized I had stopped breathing until I started to feel light headed. The detachment I had sent fired over twenty thousand missiles. The Sontarans were not prepared for such an assault and they lost a good thirty percent of their ships in the opening salvo. That got them mad and they began following the detachment as they ran back to the main fleet.

Thankfully, the engines of the detachment kept them out of firing range during the two hour chase. I let the main fleet step down to Alert Status 2 so the crew could get something to eat. British naval tradition required crews to be properly fed and rested before combat if it could be helped. I wasn't going to anger tradition by not feeding them.

I took lunch in my office off the flag bridge. I talked to Vance and Fuller during lunch. We all agreed that TARDIS ARRAY was our best bet. I would have loved to add more pods, but the command systems couldn't handle it. Then I had an idea.

"Vance, the missile carriers, you know the auxiliaries, what kind of computer power do they have?" I asked. He got out his E-pad and checked. The auxiliaries were big cargo transports full of weapons to reload the fleet with during combat.

"A good amount sir. Nothing like the _Enterprise_, but good enough for missile pods. That would give us an additional two thousand missiles we could fire."

"Good, set it up. That being said, let's bring the fleet back to General Quarters. We have thirty minutes. " I said. We walked back to our stations. Alarms blared to tell the crew to return to their posts. When I returned to the map, I saw a problem. The Sontarans had slowed to fire fighters that were slowly catching up to the detachment. The fleet would have to waste missiles taking them out and they knew it. Then one of the destroyer squadrons fell behind.

"Sir, they're not responding. Weapons status shows they're firing everything sir. The fighters are getting ripped up. Main enemy force firing." I closed my eyes as the brave squadron disappeared into small super novas. " All ships lost sir." Vance said. I nodded and then opened my eyes.

"They've bought us time and space. Let's not let their deaths be in vain. Roll pods. Ready long range missile launchers on all ships." I said. "Fire on my mark." The numbers were now 600-300, with us still behind. It was a lot better than it was a few hours ago.

"All ships ready to fire sir. Enemy entering extreme missile range now. They'll enter main missile range in three minutes." The enemy fired missiles, but I didn't. Extreme missile range meant that the missiles would us up most of their fuel just getting there. They wouldn't be able to maneuver to their target.

"Understood. Inform the heavy cruisers they are to use laser turrets to take out the enemy salvo." The clock finished counting down as the enemy crossed into missile range. "All ships. Fire!" I roared. The map suddenly filled up as 102,000 missiles entered space and charge towards the enemy.

Their mistake had been firing so early. They had no missile counter measures left and the super sonic missiles were too fast for laser turrets. I watched in morbid fascination as enemy ship after ship blinked out of existence. We took out a good two hundred ships. Then, it was their turn. They fired 50,000 missiles, but none were super sonic. Still, a good one hundred got through.

The entire 55th Heavy Cruiser Squadron disappeared into flames as they took the punishment intended for their battleship charges. They tok every missile intended for them. The 103rd Light Cruiser Squadron also disappeared into flames as the missiles proved too much. I lost twenty ships in one salvo, but we were now even.

"Fire again! Cross beams fire!" I said. Cross beams were massive, heavy laser weaponry that tore through enemy ships. Only dreadnaughts had them, but the thirty I did have were undamaged and they did horrible damage to the oncoming enemy fleet. We now had the advantage and I still had another salvo to fire.

Another 102,000 missiles fired in conjunction to the lasers. I watched three hundred ships blow up, and that number included their flagship obviously, because they then turned and ran. I ordered the fleet to give chase. We still had shipyards to destroy.

"Commodore, order Rose's squadron to take out structures one through five." I said. I then turned back to the map to plot then next attack when he said.

"Sir, Rose's squadron was the one that stayed behind to fight the fighters. There were no survivors."


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter Ten

James

I sat in the shuttle silently as it carried me to Ashford Castle. The three weeks back from Alpha Base had been hell. I hadn't slept more than a few hours a day. I had failed. Sure, the mission had been a success but I now had to report the destruction of nearly one hundred ships and the death of a close friend to Emma and the World Assembly.

Every day I looked over the records from the battle, trying to find what I missed that got Rose killed, but I couldn't find it. I wasn't sure if that mean that it was truly bad luck, or if I sucked as a commanding officer of the fleet. When I contacted Earth to inform them of the success, I hadn't officially released the death list yet, so no one knew who was alive and who wasn't. I wasn't allowed to release it until twelve hours upon return to Earth.

The shuttle touched down as gently as ever. I walked the halls solemnly. People smiled when they saw me, and guards saluted, but it made me feel worse. I didn't deserve any praise for getting people killed or for killing others.

Emma hugged me when I walked into her office. I hugged back. I was about to tell her about Rose when she jumped up and down and said.

"Guess what?" I sighed.

"What?"

"The Doctor and I are getting married." I did my best to smile, but her announcement only made me feel worse. It was something else that Rose couldn't ever experience, and another happy event I had ruined. "The Doctor wants to know if you'll be his best man." Emma said. I looked at the Doctor who nodded.

"I'm honored, but no, you don't want me as a best man. Look, I need to tell you something. You'll want to sit down." Emma sat down on the sofa next to the Doctor, her original happiness replaced by fear as my tone grew darker. "Rose...she didn't make it." I said.

Emma's eyes watered slightly. I wanted to stop looking at her, but I made myself. I needed to see what I had done to people. I needed to see how badly my fuck up was hurting everyone. It didn't make me feel better, but that wasn't the point. The point was to punish myself.

"That's a good one!" The Doctor said. He was laughing! "Rose isn't dead. You almost had me there for a second James, but I see you're lying." Emma looked at me pleadingly. She wanted the Doctor to be right. However, I shook my head and then I heard the worst sound I had ever heard. The Doctor let out some kind of wail and then fell to the floor crying. Emma ran over and hugged him.

Again, I wanted so badly to turn and leave. To let them have this moment, but I made myself watch the Doctor's pain at my own failure. I stood there for an hour before he calmed down, but I didn't move once. Not even an inch.

"It's not your fault," the Doctor said. "She knew what she was getting into. She knew death was part of life and combat. You did everything you could." His words hit me worse than any slap or punch. He was wrong! I should have seen the fighters coming, or at least been aware of their possible existence.

"Yes, it is. She broke off to stop fighters from coming in and ruining the first salvo. I didn't see them until they had been launched and that's my responsibility and I will inform the World Assembly of my failure tomorrow during my report," I said. Emma stood up and slapped me. It stung, but not as much as the pain of knowing that she had slapped me.

"What the fuck is wrong with you? I saw the records. How could you have seen it? No one else did." She hugged me. "You did everything you could. I know you feel guilty right now, but it's true. Don't claim responsibility to stop your own guilt. Rose wouldn't want that and neither do I. I'm sure Amy doesn't" I actually started to tear up as she beat some sense into me. She hugged me again.

"You're right. I'm sorry." I said. The doors flung open, and Amy ran in. She nearly tackled me as she ran into me. I kissed her, maybe putting too much pressure on her lips, but she responded with equal force. We began to move faster, introducing tongue, but Emma stopped us.

" Hey! Hold up. Get a room later. We need to speak now." Emma said. I let go of Amy, who winked at me, and we sat down in the chairs. "Alright, Rose is dead." Amy clenched my hand. She knew me too well. "We've established that James isn't at fault." I saw the Doctor clench Emma's hand.

"Of course he isn't!" Amy said.

"Right, so tomorrow, you're going to address the World Assembly. They're going to want to hear your story from start to finish. From the minute you entered the system, to the moment you landed here. You're a little shaky, so go home and get some sleep."

"Ugh, I have to fly out to the moon," I said. Amy shook her head.

"Nope. I got us a room at a hotel nearby. You need sleep," she said. She then leaned closer and whispered. "Among other things." I smiled.

"Alright! You two can go, but no staying up too late. You have an important meeting tomorrow." Amy held my hand as we left. It might not have looked professional but I didn't care.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter Eleven

Princess Emma

Until James' return, I had been preoccupying myself with wedding plans. Honestly, it's probably a better alternative to spending half of the day drunk out of my mind. The Doctor was happy with that alternative, too. We would spend hours in my office, looking through online magazines for dresses, decoration ideas, venues, etc.

Then, James showed up and gave us the news. Rose Tyler was dead. I couldn't believe it. Sure, we hadn't been the best of friends, but I respected her strength. I wouldn't last a minute in battle, and everyone knows it. But Rose and I recognised that the other was well suited for her job. I think maybe my dislike of her had spawned from jealousy. I felt threatened by her; I'll admit. The Doctor looked at her with admiration, but she had said that she wasn't interested in relationships. Rose always said that emotions could compromise someone on the battlefield, and that explained why she was so detached. I'd seen her laugh maybe once. Despite my dislike of her, I hated that she was dead. She was a reminder to me that I needed to stay strong and stick to my instinct and intuition. We both knew that if there was ever anyone able to charm the World Assembly, it was me. And she had meant so much to the Doctor.

I'd never seen the Doctor so torn up about something. Ever. He fell to pieces. His hazel eyes used to be the colour of tree bark: beautiful, fresh, and full of life. But now, they were dull. They no longer shone with the light of curiosity. I didn't know what to do. His beautiful, chocolatey hair had lost it's sheen. It hung around his face in a disheveled mess.

In fact, I'd been a mess, too. My eyes were red, I was nauseous almost constantly, and I felt bloated almost everyday. Do you know how much it sucks to feel bloated? All the time? I'm a girl. Being bloated equates to one of three things: pregnancy, periods, or eating too much food. And it certainly wasn't eating too much. I'd hardly eaten for fear of throwing up. I suspected that, as much complication it would cause, it was pregnancy. But I didn't know. Not for sure.

The Doctor and I cleaned up for the World Assembly because we had to. James explained the course of the battle to them before giving the final report.

"Operation TARDIS ARRAY was a success. Well, I say success meaning we came out victorious. However, we lost 20 ships, and we had a total of 15,648 casualties. That was much less than predicted, so we came out better than expected. I'm afraid that I can't promise results as encouraging for the second battle. However, we are preparing for victory, and we will not surrender. You can rest assured of that." James' report brought more conflict among the leaders. That dumb-ass Jacques Dubois started again to question my choice. I hate that man. I swear, one day, if he "accidentally" falls off the top of the Eiffel Tower, I will gladly take the blame. I stood up and slammed my fist on the table.

"Shut the hell up!" I shouted. "Now, it's not very lady-like of me to use that kind of language, but you _cannot_ keep questioning my authority and decisions. These meetings are not about questioning me. These meetings are to inform you of what is happening so that you may relay what you feel to be necessary to your citizens. I am not controlling any of you. I simply represent Earth in intergalactic affairs. _You_," I turned to President Dubois, "are a pain in my ass. You say one more thing about my rule, and I promise you, your ass will be on the next ship to Mars where you will be held for treason without trial. So zip it." Again, his face paled, and he sat back in his chair. He held my glare and sneered at me. I shot him a sarcastic smile. "Thank you," I seethed. I heard him whisper something to the effect of _"some ruler_" under his breath. He snickered a bit, and I looked at him again. "Wow, sarcasm. That's original!" I laughed at his face while I mocked him.

The French have some sort of pride complex. I can honestly say that I have never liked them. Dubois knew he needed to keep his mouth shut because it would be a big blow to French pride if their President was sent to Mars for treason. There would be a rivalry, and England and France would be at war. Again.

"Now, you are all dismissed." I stood from my chair, and to mock Dubois' challenge of my professionalism, I reached up on my tiptoes and kissed the Doctor. Just a peck, mind you, but it was enough to make him turn bright red with rage. Then, I took the Doctor's hand and walked out of the building.

James departed the next morning, and I was glad he did. I was late. You know what I mean. I had kept track. James was gone for three weeks, and right before they deployed, the Doctor had proposed. I was supposed to have my period that first week that James was gone. I was pregnant.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter Twelve

Princess Emma

I had no idea how to break the news to the Doctor. I suspected that he knew already, but I wanted to tell him. How, though? I figured the best way would be to just come out and say it.

I sat in my office two days after that disaster of a World Assembly meeting. Sometimes I just wanted to pour hot wax down Jacques Dubois' throat. Sorry, that was unprofessional and extremely violent, but he needs to filter what he says. I was going through James' official reports. I was going to visit the families of the officers killed in battle, and then we were having a big funeral for the 15,648 people who died, along with a private one for Rose. There were no bodies to bury, but I convinced the WA to allow land for intergalactic soldiers and crew members.

I looked up as the door creaked open. The Doctor poked his head through the crack, smiling devilishly at me. I smiled at him, and he raised an eyebrow.

"Are you particularly busy right now, dear?" he asked. I put the E-pad down and turned the screen off.

"No, just final preparations for the funeral. Why, babe?" He motioned with a finger for me to come to him, so I stood and walked to the door. He grabbed my hand and began to lead me down a hallway.

Ashford Castle is a huge place, but I thought I'd managed to explore all of it. Clearly not, because I had no idea where we were going.

"Doctor, where are we going?" I asked timidly. He turned to smile at me.

"I think you know..." He flashed me an omniscient smile. Damn his cute mysteriousness. "I believe you have something you were gonna tell me over dinner?" He knew. Shit. How?

"Oh... That. Well, I was hoping it would be a surprise. I mean... I'm not sure yet," I stuttered. I looked down at the ground.

"That's why I got a tailor! Rather than worry about the neckline you like on that one, but the bodice you like on this one, now you can get your wedding dress exactly as you want it! I promise I won't peek. I'll just get Meggie to give me periodic updates." Periodic... Now he was making period jokes? I opened my mouth to retort when it clicked that he was on a completely different topic.

"Wait... What?" I asked stupidly.

"I thought you had decided on a dress...?" asked the Doctor slowly. It was probably meant as a statement but we were all confused. "I remember you couldn't find anything exactly like you wanted and it worried me that you had decided." I let out a sigh of relief.

"No, no, dear. I haven't decided." I smiled. "Thank you. And I'll get Meggie to keep you updated. I do have something to tell you, though." I looked at the ground again and fidgeted with my shirt-tail. The Doctor took my face in his hands and raised it to look at him. "I-I'm pregnant," I stuttered. He smiled gently and placed a hand on my abdomen. I put my hands over his and returned his grin.

"I know. I couldn't be happier." He leaned down and pecked my lips.

"We can't tell James."

"He'll want to know."

"I know. But he'll worry too much. He can't know." The Doctor nodded. "I'll tell him when I'm ready."

"When will that be exactly?"

"After the wedding...?" I shot the Doctor a goofy smile while he chuckled. He pulled me in by my waist.

"Why does that not surprise me?" he joked. He placed a kiss on the tip of my nose.

"Because you know me so well," I replied, walking my fingers up his chest to fix his bow-tie.

"Are you gonna tell the WA?"

"Probably not. At least not until I have to," I admitted.

"Well, at least now you'll get off the whiskey."

"Right. Lord knows I've had enough to last a lifetime." I laughed nervously. "Do you think we can win this war, Doctor?" The fear was clear in my face as I asked.

"I think we have a good chance. I can't guarantee anything, though. If I remember correctly, we do win, but I've been wrong in the past..." He trailed off. Right. I knew that he had tried to set things right in the past and failed. I walked over to a couch and left him standing in the middle of the room. I sat down and stared at my hands, resting on my knees.

"Do you think I'm suited for this job?" I blurted after a minute of silence. "Honestly. Do you think I'm in over my head? I mean, I've never had a position of leadership. Hell, I couldn't even get elected class president in high school. What the fuck makes me qualified for this job?" I began to grind my teeth together. What had I gotten myself into? I looked at my perfectly manicured cuticles. I hated them. They made me look as if I had no issues with this job. It doesn't even pay well. They just wanted me to look put together. Damn media. I remember when I was 16 and thought they would never heal. I tore them apart. It was stress. The Doctor knew that. He knew that I pushed myself too hard, and

yet here I am, stressing myself with this damn job. What the fuck was I thinking?

The only times my cuticles were okay were when I was with the Doctor, and I guess that's the only reason they've survived this job; because he's been here the whole time. He hasn't left me like he did in the past. But in that moment I hated them so much. They were a reminder that I was a figurehead, and when it came down to it, I held no real power.

"Honey, are you feeling alright?" The Doctor sounded concerned, but I wasn't looking at him. I closed my eyes and scratched at the cuticles on my thumb. It didn't do much, and I became frustrated. I opened my eyes, and I dug the nail into the cuticle, watching as I drew blood. The tears prickled my eyes; I had forgotten how much it hurts. As I went to tear at it again, the Doctor pulled my hand into his, holding it so that I couldn't get at my nails. He took the other hand in his.

"I thought we had gotten over this?!" I didn't answer; I felt extremely guilty. He was right. I _had _gotten over it, but I needed a release. Honestly, sex only helps so much. "Look at me!" His voice became full of rage, and my head snapped up to look him in the eye. His eyes smoldered. I'd never seen him this angry, and it scared me.

"Why do you care?!" I shouted, suddenly bold. I pulled my hands from his. "It's not hurting you anyway!" I stood up and strode away from the couch towards the door.

"Don't you walk away from me!" The Doctor grabbed my arm and turned my to face him. I glared at him, only to see his rage replaced with pain. "It does hurt me." His voice was softer. He'd always had an issue with anger control, and he had done pretty well getting back in control, but I wasn't having it today. I didn't see why he bothered to stop me. He should've known I was going to start up again.

"How? How in the world does it hurt you?" I countered.

"Because, as much as you say that you're numb to the pain, I can see that it hurts you. And I don't like to see you in pain. It's the one thing I can't protect you from."

"What would that be?"

"Yourself." I gazed at him, my face scrunching together as I understood what he was saying. "You hurt yourself. Not with a razor, but with your own nails. You stress yourself to the point that you feel the need to drink. Then you end up with the worst hangover I've ever seen. You're pregnant. Granted, that's partly my fault. I'm happy for you to have a family, because I don't want anything more than that, but do you realize just how much scrutiny you're gonna get for that?" I shook my head. "I will protect you from the doubt as much I can, but we can't pretend that this is uncalled for."

"You're right. I do this to myself." I looked at the ground. "Help me. Please." The Doctor took my chin in his hand and tilted my face up to his. He smiled gently.

"My pleasure." He pecked my lips quickly before leading me back to my office. "Now, let's finish those preparations." The Doctor took my hand in his and we walked down the hall in comfortable silence. Suddenly, my stomach growled. He smiled at me, and I glared at him. We continued walking.

"Do we have any chantilly cream?" I asked suddenly.

"Yes, dear," the Doctor joked. "Pregnancy cravings..." I laughed as he

muttered under his breath.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

James

The day for the second battle had arrived. I had again taken the fleet from Earth and we had been traveling for three weeks, again. Thankfully, we had many more ships than last time and a victory was insured by all readings. Scout ships had been sent ahead of the fleet by an hour. They would get all the scans of the system and upload it to the fleet when we arrived.

I sat on the flag deck as the fleet exited hyperspace, into a trap. Alarms blared as the fleet was hit with missile after missile. The Sontarans had known exactly where we would deploy, which mean that there must be a spy somewhere. Eighteen of my ships died instantly, with another forty injured. We couldn't roll pods, and we were outnumbered.

The fleet returned fire and actually did a good amount of damage, but their opening salvo had been too much. We couldn't win. It was impossible at this point. We only had one option, retreat.

"Vance! Tell all ships to get the hell out of here. Nearest system. We'll make repairs there!" I said. He nodded and the _Enterprise_ shook as missiles struck it. I saw both fleets take massive damage, but it didn't matter. We might be able to beat their fleet, but we couldn't destroy the military fortress.

Ships begin to disappear into hyperspace. It was slow going as many had damage to their computers, but thankfully none were too damaged to escape.

"Vance! Lay mines," I said. That would stop them from taking us out one by one as we escaped. The rest of Dreadnaught Squadron 44, _Enterprise_'s squadron escaped, but right as _Enterprise_ was about to escape, we were hit by a missile, destroying the hyperspace generator. We were stuck. There was no way to escape.

"Fuller, moved the ship into the minefield." It was weird to command a single ship fleet. I had no screening element, no heavy missiles, just one damaged dreadnaught.

The Sontarans stopped at the edge of the field and waited. They couldn't find the mines to destroy them, but they knew they were there. We were safe for now.

"Sir, the main generator's taken damage. Three hours until it blows," Vance said. I nodded.

"Alright. Let's set the computer to autopilot. Evacuate the crew and then throw the ship at them. Doesn't matter how much they pound it and it will go supernova and take them out," I said. He nodded and began to issue orders. The Sontarans fired a salvo of missiles and the ship buckled.

Consoles exploded and alarms blared. I saw the long list of damaged systems. Two more hits and we'd probably be finished. We got struck again and I was thrown to the deck, my leg broken. I passed out, but I was able to find out what happened later. Vance picked me up and helped me into an escape pod. Instead of getting himself out, he saved me, right as the _Enterprise_ exploded. He never had a chance.

I floated in space for a day before they found me. The Sontarans took me to the space fortress I had tried to destroy. It was the worst place imaginable.

Amy

I stared at the calendar and obediently circled the date and time. James was over a week late. No one had heard from the fleet, nor from any one from the fleet. If James didn't return in a few days, he'd be listed as dead. His side of the bed was cold, as if he had never inhabited it.

Someone knocked at the door. I jumped up, praying it was James. I ran over and swung it open, but it was just Emma. However, Emma looked at me and I knew. The W.A. was going to list James as dead, which meant no rescue party could be sent.

She walked in and sat in one of the chairs. I sat on the sofa and stared at the floor. How had this happened? I used to be so strong and willful, now I was a crying girl.

"I cannot order you to go, but the Doctor is going on an exploration mission near where the fleet was. He wants someone to go with him." I jolted up. A secret mission to rescue James! Of course I was going.

"You don't need to order me. When do we leave?" I asked. Emma smiled.

"I'm taking a vacation, so I'm joining you two. We're leaving now. It's the only way to get out before Meggie, as regent, has to stop us. She'll do her best but she has to perform her duties." I nodded and we ran down the hallways of the moon base. The TARDIS was at the end of the hallway. We ran in and the Doctor began pulling levers.

He was almost finished when he stopped. Emma looked at him as he sat in one of the chairs. He turned on the big screen and I cried. It showed James's dead, limp body on the floor of a room, without a head.

"No! It's not true. They're lying!" I said. Emma grabbed me as I tried to run for the main console. "He's not dead!" I said. "Let me go Emma! They still have him."

"Amy, do you see the image?" she said.

"Yes and it's a fake! It doesn't have his birthmark." Emma stopped.

"What? Where?" I looked down and she nodded in understanding. It wasn't a public part of his body. "Are you sure?" I nodded. The Doctor stood up and kept pulling levers.

"Let's get him," the Doctor said, pulling the final lever right as the World Assembly announced that the fleet was officially Killed in Action.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

James

I had never been in so much pain before. My body felt like swords were going through it, all the time. That didn't even compare to the medical "treatments" they were doing. They kept injecting me with something, and it burned like fire as it raced through my veins, adding even more pain.

I didn't know how long I had been here. It could have been a day, it could have been a year, I had no idea. The pain kept coming, only subsiding when they did something else to me. At some point, a general walked in. He smiled as he saw me.

"The great Admiral Allendale. It's great to finally meet you, although I doubt you're enjoying the circumstances," he said. "You know, you killed my brother in your first battle. Impressive I must say. I just wanted to come and tell you that your fleet is more resourceful than we thought. We can't seem to find them." It was the first good news I had experienced since this whole ordeal started. "But, who cares about combat. I have a video to show you of the last humans we had visit us."

He turned on the screen and I closed my eyes. The man and woman on the screen, missing limbs and covered in blood, were Emma's parents. They had died when she was little, so I had never met them, but I knew that the Sontarans had killed them.

Suddenly, my body was jolted and I was forced to open my eyes, right as her parents were killed, their screams echoed through the room. I could hear Emma's sobs, years old, in the background. I knew that was my fate, I knew it somehow.

"Now, we won't kill you so quickly of course. We need to find out what you know," he said with a toothed smile. "I'll be back tomorrow to check on your progress." When he left the room he pulled a lever and the pain started again, this time much worse

Amy

I paced the TARIDS impatiently as the Doctor worked to try and find James. We had been searching for over or a week now and I was getting really restless. Some of it was the lack of sex since James had left, but most of it was anxiety about whether we would find him in time.

The Doctor flipped levers and typed on the typewriter keyboard and hummed to himself. Emma smiled and watched him. They were cute together, but they made me realize that I needed to tell James that I loved him. I had only said it once, but it wasn't enough, now I may never get to tell him.

When the two lovebirds weren't looking, I had snuck a gun from the weapons closet. I knew the Doctor wouldn't agree with the use of weapons, but I didn't care. This was James we were talking about. Weaponry was more than needed.

The TARDIS shook as we changed time and position again. The Doctor jumped up and then sighed. He messed with more levers and we moved again. I hadn't slept in days, so that might have been why I got so mad but I snapped.

"What the fuck are we doing? It's been over a week and you haven't found him! What kind of Time Lord are you?" I roared. The Doctor hung his head down.

"I know. You're right. This should be much easier, but I just can't locate him. It's like his life force is being hidden." He began pacing and then yelled. "Brilliant!"

"What?"

"Amy, put your hand on that scanner." I put my hand down and glared at him. Suddenly the TARDIS shook and we were thrown around the room. I hit my head on the floor, so I was bit dazed for a second.

The Doctor ran to the doors and opened them. We were obviously on some structure built by the Sontarans but was it the right one? He walked out and slung the sonic screwdriver around a bit. He nodded at us and I got the big ass pistol I had been hiding and walked out of the TARDIS. No one took James away from me. No one.

James

I screamed. I couldn't stop myself as the machines expertly sliced through my arms, cutting through the bone. I heard the cracking of the bones and the blood pooling on the table. I had no painkillers, or any medicine, just pain. This was the third day they had cut off my limbs and then reattached them. It hurt the same each time and blood spilled on to the metal table I was on. They still pumped the burning liquid into my blood.

The machines picked up the limbs and reattached them, which oddly hurt worse than having them sawed off by a laser beam. When they had finished putting back into place, and sealing the nerves, the machines retracted into the walls, and I was alone again.

It wasn't as bad as yesterday. Yesterday, they used a holographic image of Amy as torture. They made me think they had found her and they killed her in front of me for not telling where the fleet was.

Laying there, I breathed heavily as the pain slowly subsided. The liquid was still being pumped in, but slowly my body was adjusting, able to ignore the pain. Suddenly, I heard gunshots from the hallway. What were Sontarans doing with human pistols?

The door to my room opened and I almost cried. Damn them. There was Amy, standing in the doorway, but I knew she couldn't actually be there. She ran over and unhook the locks from my legs. It was too unfair! They couldn't do this! It was too cruel.

The Doctor and Emma ran in too. This was too far. Suddenly, the Doctor picked me up and carried me through the hallways. When I saw the dead bodies of the Sontarans, I started to cry. I knew that the Sontarans would never make holographic images of their own defeat. I was actually getting rescued!

The Doctor laid me down in the TARDIS and began pulling levers and mashing buttons. Amy crouched down next to me, feeding me water and just being there. I could see her tears as she saw how bad I had been treated.

"James! I need to know where you sent the fleet," the Doctor said. The TARDIS shook.

"System nearest here, in the nebula," I managed to say. Amy held my hand as my body spasmed. The liquid, while still not being pumped in, was still inside me and it didn't mind causing pain. Emma ran over with a sonic screwdriver and did a quick scan. She handed it to the Doctor, who suddenly looked at me with weird eyes.

"No...Can't be," he murmured. He put it down and focused on the TARDIS. I slid in and out of consciousness.

Amy

"No...Can't be," the Doctor said. I looked at him, but he pulled more levers and cursed. "Something's keeping us here." He ran a few scans and cursed again.

"What is it Doctor?" Emma asked. I kept stroking James's bloodied hair, crying.

"A machine, about nine hallways over," he said. "I can't shut it off from here."

"I'll go," Emma said. He looked at her pleadingly. I looked at James's mangled body before standing up.

"No, I'll go. Emma you stay. Be right back." I said and ran out of the TARDIS. I ran the nine hallways at full speed, barely breathing from the exertion. The machine in question was a huge blue tower, emitting some field. The controls were on the other side of a the machine, which had warning signs. The TARDIS translated it for me. **Do not cross bridge if field is on!** I had one option.

I took out my gun and aimed. _I love you James_, I thought before I fired. The machine exploded into oblivion.

James

I finally woke up in a white room. I saw the symbol for Earth's government, so I must not have dreamt the rescue up. Amy was asleep, holding my hand. I saw Emma through the window, talking with the Doctor. They looked worried about something. However, when they saw I was awake, they stopped arguing and walked in.

"Hey." Emma said.

"How long have I been away?" I asked. It could have been hours, or years, I had no idea.

"Two months with the Sontarans, a week in a coma," Amy said. Over two months! The fleet!

"Where is the fleet? I have to find them!" I said, trying to get up. Amy pushed me back down, which wasn't hard since I was so weak.

"We already found them. They're being looked after at the space docks now stop worrying," she said. "You're not going anywhere. They had to reset your bones and try and pump that liquid out. You're going to be here for several more days." I sighed. I would argue, but I knew she was right and I couldn't stand up anyway.

"Wait, where's Amy?" I asked suddenly. Emma looked at the Doctor, who then walked out. " Emma?" She pulled up a chair next to my bed.

"James, Amy died on the station during the rescue." I don't remember what happened next, but eventually Emma held me as I cried for hours.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter Fifteen

Princess Emma

It was a blow to the whole staff here at Ashford that Amy was dead. She had a noble funeral, honoring a noble death. Meggie was torn apart; I knew she had wanted a companion back there. But James and Amy needed each other. Meggie couldn't deny that. I had to figure something out. Amy kept James sane whether he realised it or not.

I had denied his resignation, sure, but I didn't think he could handle this on his own. I had called in help. He was a general in the Earth Space Army. I thought that General Matt Anton, an American, could be a very good partner for James. James was very stoic by nature, but Matt was jovial, cracking jokes left and right to keep people from worrying.

Matt was actually really attractive, honestly, but he wasn't my Doctor, so I wasn't interested. Matt was tall, around 6'2, with light brown hair. His hair had some black specks in it, though, so it looked almost like a darker brown. He was pretty fit, very muscular, but then, he had to be to be in the Earth Space Army. He seemed like a daunting figure first seeing him, but he was just a giant teddy bear. He was a sweetheart, and I hoped that he and James would get along.

I summoned Matt to meet with me, and I told the Doctor that he was required to meet him as well.

"Why do I need to be there as well?" the Doctor questioned.

"Because I can tell what you're thinking," I retorted. He cocked his head, giving a falsely innocent look. "You've met Matt, and you're afraid that for some reason I might try something with him. I don't understand why, because I love you, and I'm caring your child, but to remedy your uneasiness, you are going to meet him with me." I smiled proudly.

"Fine, fine. You got me. I'm just looking out for my family," the Doctor conceded, grinning. He pulled me in for a hug and kissed the top of my head.

"Oh my god!" I exclaimed suddenly. I pulled away and clutched my stomach.

"Did the baby kick?!" the Doctor exclaimed back. I gave him a weird look.

"No... It's just morning sickness. Why?"

"Well, you've been pregnant for four months. You should feel kicks now, shouldn't you?"

"I don't know... I've never been pregnant..?"

"Are you actually nauseas?"

"Not really..." I scrunched my eyebrows together. The Doctor grinned goofily and placed his hand on my stomach. I felt another pang, but it was obvious it wasn't morning sickness. My eyes widened in wonder, and I looked up at him, mouth agape. "How did you know?"

"I've seen a few pregnancies in my 900 plus years," he chuckled quietly. My lips curved into a smile.

"Oh my god! There's a kid in me..." I must've had a really stupid look on my face, because the Doctor went into a full-blown laugh attack. I thought they only happened to me, but I was wrong. The Doctor sank to his knees and clutched his stomach while trying to keep from laughing too much. I guess he didn't wanna offend me. Too late.

I glared down at him, hip popped and arms crossed as he calmed down. He looked up at me and smiled at me sheepishly.

"I'm sorry, but you said it in a way that seemed as if you either: A) didn't know what pregnancy was, or B) didn't know you were pregnant," he justified.

"You better be glad you're handsome," I said simply before walking towards the bedroom door.

"Where are you going?"

"Well, I can't meet our new general in sweats, now can I?" He sighed. "Now, are you coming? I like having your opinion." He stood up and took my hand as we walked. I asked him to turn on some music, and he turned on something from the 2000s. I've never heard of it besides from him, but then again, he used to spend a lot of time in that century. I laughed as he sang along because he can't sing.

"_Ever since I was little it looked like fun!_" sang the Doctor.

"Dear, what are we listening to?!" I finally shouted over the music.

"Gnarls Barkley. One of the greatest voices of the mid 2000s. Of course, no one at the time knew that he actually was Ce Lo Green, but whatever. The song's called _Crazy_."

"You and your old music..." I joked. He gave a puppy dog face. "I think it's cute, don't worry."

We finished up, and the Doctor picked out a dress for me. It was simple. He also placed my tiara on my hair carefully. I was so excited. I didn't get to wear it often because it was only for super official stuff. And this qualified. Matt Anton was an American; he wouldn't respect me as much. The Doctor wanted to remind him of my power.

Apparently the Doctor met Matt when he was younger. The Doctor was on a case, so to say, and Matt helped him out. He told me to be wary of Matt because though, happy and kind, he tended to follow his own orders if not kept in check.

We walked to my office, and I took a seat behind my desk. Shortly after, the doors were opened and Matt Anton entered. I stood, and the Doctor and I approached him as he walked towards the middle of the office. He and the Doctor shook hands and exchanged smiles.

"Nice to see you again, Doctor," Matt greeted.

"And you," the Doctor replied. They dropped hands, and Matt turned to look at me. I'd heard he was a bit of a ladies' man, almost as bad as Jack Harkness really, but I didn't realise the extent until that moment.

"Princess." Matt gave me a charming smile and took my right hand in his. He locked eyes with me and kept eye contact while he bent over to kiss my hand. I suppressed a giggle; why didn't the Doctor do things like that? "How are you today, Your Highness?" He pulled away and let my hand drop. I raised my left hand and sassily wiggled my fingers.

"Engaged," I replied, watching as horror at his actions crossed his face.

"Oh, I'm so sorry! I didn't know!" Matt exclaimed in horror. "Who's the lucky guy?" He smiled politely, sitting in James' usual seat as the Doctor and I took seats behind my desk. I looked lovingly at the Doctor.

"Him," I said wistfully. Matt smiled again.

"So, why am I here, Princess?" Matt began. I waited until the doors were firmly shut.

"First, you can call me Emma. 'Princess' is just a formal title." Matt laughed a bit at my intro. "Second, I have a job for you." His look darkened. "If you're up to it."

"Of course I'm up to it," Matt scoffed. "I'd like to know what it is, though."

"Well, I'm sure you heard about the recent rescue of Admiral James Allendale?"

"Hasn't everyone?"

"Well, James has been a little down in the dumps about his capture. He has a history of depression, honestly. In fact, back in high school, he tried once." I looked down and forced back my tears. I hadn't talked about this. I raised my head again. The Doctor was looking at me, surprised. Matt seemed a little confused. "He tried suicide. I had a key to his apartment because we were best friends. He had moved out as soon as he turned 18. I knocked, but he didn't answer. I heard some movement so I unlocked the door and went in. I found him, in the bathroom trying to overdose. I called the Doctor, and restrained him from getting anymore, but he passed out before the Doctor got there. The Doctor fixed him up, but I've been worried lately that he might try something again."

"So what are you saying?" Matt asked cautiously.

"I'm saying that I want you to keep an eye out for James. Make sure he doesn't try it again. I don't want him to."

"Okay. I'm up for it." Matt smiled cheekily at me, and I returned it, grateful someone would look out for my best friend when I couldn't.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter Sixteen

Princess Emma

"You seem very calm, and dare I say, nonchalant about the task at hand..." I began.

"I was trying to be professional," Matt answered, a shadow of confusion crossing his face.

"Do you think that you're qualified for this?"

"Honey, I was born for this." Matt scowled at me. "I guess you didn't know that my sister committed suicide, did you?" I gasped.

"No, I'm so sorry!"

"My mother died when I was young, and my father went through depression after Susan's death. I had to keep him sane, keep him from going over the edge. I didn't want a foster home, and he didn't want to be institutionalised. I know what I'm doing, Emma. Trust me."

"Doctor, did you know about this?"

"Yeah, yeah I did," he consented. Matt's eyes widened.

"I never told you that!"

"I picked up on a few things." The Doctor flashed a devilish grin at Matt.

"It doesn't matter if he knew already!" I exclaimed, exasperated with the boys' sassiness towards each other. "Matt, I'm sorry to hear about this. That's a very troubling past, and I think you and I will get along because of that. But the issue at hand was _Do you think you're qualified?_ and I can honestly say that Matt is more than qualified." I looked at Matt, and he flashed me an appreciative smile. "I think our official business is done here. Agreed?" The Doctor and Matt nodded, and I grinned. "Good! Matt, I have something to tell you, but you can't tell James."

"What, Emma?" Matt inquired, clearly intrigued.

"Yeah, Princess, what could you possibly need to tell him?" the Doctor joked.

"Well..." I started, earning chuckles out of both of them. "I'm pregnant. You _cannot_ tell James. He will refuse to do his job if he knows."

"Why would he do that?" asked Matt.

"He'd want to protect her," the Doctor answered.

"Oh, gotcha. Anything else I need to know?"

"Umm... Don't tell James my real reason for sending you. Just tell him I thought he could use some company and some assistance to ease the stress." Matt scrunched his eyebrows together, obviously confused. "Don't tell him about my suicide worries."

"Oh... Okay. I'll keep that between us."

"Thank you." Matt nodded and then stood.

"I guess I oughta be out of here. James is gonna need my help as soon as possible, huh?" I stood and accompanied Matt to the door.

"Yep. Get on it," I said. Matt winked, and then his cheeks flushed red. "We're gonna pretend that didn't happen..." I whispered mischievously.

"What didn't happen?" the Doctor asked, approaching us at the door.

"Oh, nothing," I said dismissively. "Just don't ask; I'll explain later," I whispered to him.

"I'm off, then," Matt announced. He waved good-bye and opened the door, gently shutting it behind him.

"Bye!" I shouted, hoping he could hear me through the now closed door. I heard a raucous laughter and knew he'd heard.

"So what was this nothing?" The Doctor smirked at me, and we walked back over to my desk. He sat on the chair Matt had occupied only minutes before, and I perched on the desk.

"Now, I don't know about this, but I think that Matt could be gay..." I started, smiling despite myself.

"Oh lord. What's James gonna think? Wait, no. Why do you think that?"

"I don't know. Matt just really set my 'gay-dar' off, ya know?"

"A _gay-dar_? Really?" The Doctor stifled a laugh.

"Yes! Don't you have one?!" I exclaimed, feeling heat rise in my cheeks as the Doctor embarrassed me further.

"No idea. Probably not. Back to my question: What is James gonna think?" The Doctor's laughter subsided.

"Well, we won't tell him. If he and Matt begin to get along, we could tell him if we know for sure. Maybe Matt will tell him right off the bat. Again, I'm not certain."

"Honestly, I can see why you think that. He sort of reminds me of Jack Harkness with his disposition."

"I know, right?!" I laughed. "That's partly why I'm convinced."

"We're discussing this as if it could affect the world," the Doctor pointed out, a smile gracing his lips.

"Maybe it will one day." I shrugged. "You never know..." I sing-songed the last part. The Doctor shook his head, disbelief of my actions clear in his hazel eyes. "You need a sense of humour, mister." I pouted jokingly.

"Oh, I've got one. A sick sense of humour, but a sense of humour nonetheless..." The Doctor's eyes darkened ever so slightly.

"Not now. I'm pregnant, remember?" I teased.

"You are so gonna get it," he warned.

"You _so_ sound like a teenage Valley girl," I mocked.

"That's it." The Doctor went and locked the door, sauntering back with a devilish smirk.


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

James

I was still in the hospital a few weeks later, having left only for Amy's funeral. I still cried nightly. I missed her so damn much. Thankfully, I had plenty of reports to fill out, so I didn't have much time to think about her. I did think of Vance too. A lot of the reports were concerning the loss of my staff, especially Vance.

Tears came to my eyes, but ignored them as best I could. I signed off more orders and pushed the papers to the table. It was later, past midnight and I could tell from the way the nurses were giving me looks, that there were not at all happy with me. I turned a page and felt another pang of guilt, hurt, and despair.

It was another copy of the list of dead from the battle. It was over 40,000 long and every single one was painful. They all were dead because I had failed them.

Emma had rejected my resignation. I tried to argue, but she put her foot down. She said the horrific battle wasn't my fault and I needed to understand that. So I was still in command. Suddenly, someone knocked on my door. I looked up from my papers.

Standing in the doorway was a general in the Earth Space Army. (I have a confession before I continue. I'm bi. If you have a problem with it, deal with it!)

Back to the story, the general was cute. He was about my age, with brown to black hair, my height with a muscular build. He was a full general, basically my counterpart in the Army. He walked in without invitation.

"Good morning, Admiral," he said.

"Same to you, General. I'd get up but.." I said, cutting off. He waved his hand dismissively.

"I understand," he said. He pulled out a handwritten letter from his jacket pocket. "These are my orders." I took the letter and read it. He'd been assigned to my staff as Commander of Marines Unit. My last one had died on the _Enterprise_.

"Consider your orders accepted. Have a seat," I said. He sat in one of the empty metal chairs. "I assume you're aware of the situation concerning Marines. We lost a good amount of them during the fiasco," I said.

"Yes, I have, sir. However, I don't have a full list of fatalities from the battle." The fact he said battle in a way that didn't make it sound like the fuck up that it was did not escape me.

"Yeah, my staff's in a bit of a chaotic transformation," I said. "I have yet to even find a chief of staff," I said. The recommendation list was way down the pile of papers on my desk.

"My staff is less busy. If you'd like, sir, I can transfer some to you."

"Thank you and let's drop the rank. You can call me James."

"Matt Anton," he said. "I hear you have a WA meeting as soon as you are released."

"Yeah. That's not going to be fun at all," I said despairingly. "I can already tell how Dubois will react."

"Oh? How will that son of a bitch react?" Matt asked.

"He's been waiting for me to fuck up, and I sure as hell did that."

"From what I've seen, sir, you got ambushed," he said.

"A possibility I didn't take seriously enough to plan for it." He opened his mouth to argue, but then closed it. "Anyway, I'll be released in the morning. If you'd like, you can join me on my shuttle trip to the moon base."

"Thank you. I'll do that. I'll let you get some sleep," he said before walking out. I realized he annoyed me a bit. He was too happy, too optimistic. Any idiot command could have seen I screwed up. I couldn't fathom why Emma had assigned him to my staff. He didn't seem qualified! Yet at the same time, there was something good about him that made it impossible to hate him, but I couldn't see what it was yet.

I walked into my office aboard the moon base. During the shuttle ride up, I was able to see the huge shipyards that had been built in my absence. They were huge, and the fleet numbers were higher than before I trashed the fleet. That meant even more paperwork, but it was a small price to pay for protection from the Sontarans.

Matt had ridden the shuttle with me, and he was slowly becoming less annoying, but slowly. He had left to go see his new office and figure out what strength of Marines he had under his command. My new chief of staff was someone that Emma had strongly urged me not to consider. His name was Charles Dubois and he was President Dubois's son.

His credentials were excellent and Vance had mentioned him positively many times. He was waiting in my office when I walked in.

"Good morning, Commander," I said. "Let's see today's reports"

"Yessir. The Fourth Fleet has finished trials and is cleared for active duty under Admiral Martha Jones's command. We just need your approval," he said before placing a report on my desk. I scanned it quickly before signing it. For the next hour we went over reports. Finally, we reached the bottom.

"Alright. Set up a staff meeting tomorrow at 1830. Let's make it a dinner meeting. Have the fleet commands join us by com. I don't want them away from their fleets for so long." Dubois typed notes on his E-Pad.

"Yes sir. Will that be all?" he asked politely.

"Yes. Dismissed," I said. He bowed slightly and left. I read through the shipyard reports first and signed off on the new Uberdreadnaughts. My flagship, the _Typhoon_ would be one of these new ships. They were three times the size of the _Enterprise_ and we currently had thirty-six of them, with four being built a month.

Martha had done an outstanding job in my absence, but as she was only the acting commander, she couldn't make any big decisions. That led to me having to make them all now, at one time.

My door chime sounded. "Come in," I said. The door opened and Matt strolled in. "Morning, Matt," I said.

"Same to you. I was wondering if you wanted to have dinner with me to break in the new quarters, tonight." The tone was normal, almost emotionless. My heart didn't seem to give a shit. It began to beat faster than a warp core. I took a deep breath.

"I'd love to. What time?" I asked calmly, despite my racing thoughts. I had millions of thoughts, but none of them made sense. Not one. It was like my brain had exploded.

"1800," he said, smiling widely.

"Cool. I'll see you then," I said. He smiled and walked out. As soon as the door closed, I stood up and began pacing. What was wrong with me? Maybe I hadn't fully recovered from my time in the Sontarans' prison! Then I shook my head. No, that couldn't be it.

I didn't realize how long I had been pacing until a steward came to take my lunch order. I composed myself, gave him the order, and returned to work.

Dinner actually went well. We were sitting in some sitting chairs, drinking

vodka. It had been a long day, and I was still in a bit of pain from the Sontarans.

He seemed to pick up on that. Even when I kept my brave face on, he seemed to

see right through me.

We were pretty drunk, having gone through a bottle together. I'm not sure if

it was because we were drunk, or because we had ﬁnally realized it, but before I

knew it, we were making out on the sofa. It wasn't long before we had moved

things to the bedroom, an event that lasted many hours.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

James

It was two weeks after my dinner with Matt and the Assembly hall was packed with senators and presidents. My honor guard encased me as we entered the hall. They peeled off at the doorway and came to stiff attention. I walked to the table in the middle of the large room. The Chairman of the Review Board was President Jeffery Harris of the United States. Thankfully, he was a firm supporter of Emma.

"This room will come to order. Today, May 7 2014, the Review Board is convened to examine the battle recently fought by Fleet Admiral James Allendale. Admiral, you may take the stand." I sat down at the table and the meeting began. As predicted, President Dubois asked the first question.

"Admiral, I'd like to start with your order of battle. Why did you take so few ships?" he asked. _So few ships? 300 ships wasn't a few!_

"I don't understand Mr. President. I brought 300 ships with me. That was a major amount of our fleet. I wasn't going to risk Earth anymore than I already had," I said.

"Why did you fall into a trap?" he asked. I sighed.

"Mr. President, we believe there is a leak at Earth Fleet. We have no evidence at this point, but it's unlikely the Sontarans would have figured out our list of targets and mining a system isn't their usual MO," I said.

"A leak you say?" President Harris asked.

"Yes sir. We're working on tracing it, but so far nothing's come up," I said.

"Maybe if you actually tried the-" Dubois started but Harris cut him off.

"That's enough. Admiral, why did your fleet take so many hits?" Harris asked.

"We hit a minefield. They had laid over seventy thousand mines at flashpoint, or where we entered the system, giving even more evidence to the idea that there is a traitor in our midst," I said.

"I disagree. I think you were reckless, stupid, arrogant, and 40,000 people lost their lives because of it. Mr. Chairman, I move to arrest Admiral Allendale and charge him for dereliction of duty, negligence, and murder." The room erupted into chaos. I felt the truth behind those words though. Maybe he was right.

"President Dubois! That was out of order! You are removed from the hall!" Harris roared. Several minutes passed before finally the room regained some sanity. "My apologies, Admiral. Please continue."

"While we were in the minefield, they launched small attack ships, which tore through the fleet. There wasn't much else to do but run. I had them retreat to a nebula and I was capture for several months before I was saved by the Doctor. The fleet had orders to remain in the nebula, which is why they didn't return to Earth," I said. "When I gave the orders, I was unaware my flagship had suffered FTL damage."

"Very well. Please step outside, and we'll take a vote." I stood up and left. The vote could take thirty seconds or eight hours, so I didn't expect an immediate response. I wanted them to vote me out. I wanted them to arrest me, but the politician within me knew that wasn't going to happen. Emma had too many supporters. Several hours passed, and finally, I was called back in.

"Admiral James Allendale, this board finds you not guilty of any crime or wrongdoing. You may return to active duty immediately." I died inside. I hated it when I was right.


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

James

Matt and I were working on new deployments for the Marines. It was a grueling process, as each change he made, had to be vetted by me and vice versa. It took hours, but finally, around 4, we finished. He didn't stay over, which I was glad of and the lateness of the hour made his senses dull.

He hadn't noticed I had slipped his knife from him. He probably wouldn't notice until morning. I sat in my shower and examined the blade. It was a combat knife, so I wouldn't have to push hard. Years of cutting, something Emma didn't know about, had given me a great understanding of blades.

I pushed it to my wrist and in a second I had cut the vein. I did the same to the other wrist and let go of the blade. Soon enough, I would lose enough blood and pass out, and then pass out forever. Within minutes my vision was fading and my hearing became muffled.

But not muffled enough to hear my bathroom door be blown open by a micro-explosive. The next thing I knew, Matt was holding my arms up to keep the bleeding down. He was on his com unit, calling for a med team. I tried to fight him, but he was a full fledged Marine and he was bigger than me, so it was useless.

I was still bleeding, but not near as much. He held me, getting blood all over his tunic. The whole time I could hear him mutter.

"Damn it, James. Why? I thought you passed this! I'm so sorry." Why was he sorry? It's not his fault. He wasn't my keeper! The med team came in and soon bandaged my wrists. They put my on a stretcher and took me to the hospital. I wasn't going to die tonight.


End file.
